One hundred and fifty years later, more than 100 of their descendants will converge on Invercargill this weekend at the Sullivan family reunion to celebrate their ancestors’ journey.
Sullivan family spokesman Nicholas Clyma said, "The reunion idea was randomly put forward back in March by my cousin Michael Sullivan who currently lives in Melbourne.
"We really wanted to do this as much for ourselves but for our parents and for some of the surviving members of generation two."
The descendants of the Sullivans are travelling from all over the globe to attend the family reunion over Labour Weekend.
A meet and greet at the Invercargill Workingmen’s Club starts off the programme tomorrow, followed by the official reunion dinner at the Makarewa Country Club on Saturday night, then the family gathering closes the programme with a Sunday afternoon picnic at Anderson Park.
"I'm quite excited about it really. I never thought it would happen," Margaret Clyma (nee Sullivan), 89, said.
"I’d like to talk to as many people as I can and find out who they are and where they're from."
Her nonagenarian first cousin Frank Sullivan was particularly interested in the Sullivan family history and marvelled at what life must have been like in Ireland for Daniel and Honora and what led them to join the great Irish diaspora of the 1870s.
Mr Sullivan pulled out a black and white photo of the Carrick Castle ship that his ancestors boarded as fully funded passengers bound for New Zealand.
"If they were alive today, I’d say to them ‘how do you do?’ and then ask why did you leave Ireland? What was happening over there for you to come to New Zealand?"
Five generations of Sullivan descendants — aged from 1 to 97 — will attend the reunion including 85-year-old Denise Beerkens who hails from the Concannon family.
"Our branch eventually settled in Woodlands.
"I'm looking forward to meeting people, seeing the various photos that have been gathered from the different families, and getting the history side of things such as any artefacts," Ms Beerkens said.
Descendants of notable Invercargill poet Dan Davin would also be attending the reunion and cousins Frank, Margaret and Denise were looking forward to sharing stories about their famous literary relative," Ms Beerkens said.
